


À Quoi Ça Sert L'amour

by Tango_Bleu



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Awkward Dates, Eventual Relationships, Falling In Love, Lies, M/M, Revenge, Teen Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-18
Updated: 2018-08-08
Packaged: 2019-05-25 01:53:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14966582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tango_Bleu/pseuds/Tango_Bleu
Summary: Nathaniel planned on getting revenge on Marinette and Chloé months after the Evillustrator episode by conquering the only thing both girls didn't have, that is, Adrien Agreste. The only thing he didn't expect was developing feelings for the model and for them to be reciprocal. Will an eventual relationship last when it is built on a lie?





	1. Les Amants D'un Jour

Nathaniel didn’t consider himself to be a villain, for what lead him to turn into the Evillustrator was just a rage outburst caused by the emotional frustration of possibly not having his love corresponded by Marinette. Although months have passed since that episode, he still felt he couldn’t move on from the disillusion, especially after learning that the one he believed was his one true love only had eyes for the renowned Adrien Agreste.

That fact hit Nathaniel harder than it should, mostly because he considered himself not able to compete with the always so respectable, prim and proper, perfect, untouchable, unsullied student who enchanted every living soul. Despite accepting never being good enough, he knew it may be a matter of time until Marinette and Adrien became a couple, so the only thing Nathaniel could think of doing was making Marinette feel as helpless as he was feeling. Not only that, but he could get revenge on Chloé as well for making fun of him that same fateful day, since she is also head over hills for Adrien.

He wasn’t nearly as furious as he was when he'd been akumatized, but his plans were pretty much as diabolical. To successfully execute its steps, he schemed using Adrien to achieve his purpose of making Marinette feel unloved, which meant pretend being interested in the blond boy and drag him into a relationship to prevent him from blessing Marinette or Chloé with what Nathaniel couldn’t have. Surely, they wouldn’t like to witness Adrien with another guy, not to mention, the one they both had no interest in. And to get to that point, it took him sleepless nights of colluding, until he had all the tools to put it into practice.

It started on a Monday, the day he looked forward the entire weekend, and now that he was in class, all he needed to do was wait until it was over. Throughout the meaningless explanations of Miss Butier, Nathaniel examined his object of interest, while trying to get rid of all the envy he had been feeling so it would be easier to be fond of Adrien when he finally made his move. Usually sitting by himself, and consequently living all by himself only allowed him to watch everyday lovers, daydream about one day being blessed with the same happiness they shared in front of his wishful eyes.

The only problem with his plan, if fortunate, he might hurt Adrien in the process, the one who wasn’t to blame for Nathaniel’s current disheartening love-life. But the redhead was blinded by his own selfish objectives to care. He believed that was the only way he could move on from Marinette and go back to the shadows that covered him from anyone’s view most of his life. And for the first step towards his goal, he needed that stupid bell to ring, signaling the end of another unimportant class for the artist’s professional purposes.

Until it finally rang.

Nathaniel timed his actions perfectly. He hugged his bag and made his way out of the classroom, purposely bumping into Adrien’s taller figure before he was past the door. The blond model eloquently apologized, but he didn’t care to reply with words, only mumbling in response and hugging his academic possessions tighter to his frail chest. Following to the next step, he waited until he was outside the building to perform. He silently watched perfection in the shape of a teenager walk down the steps, happily chatting with his best friend Nino, until they fist-bumped after the limousine that would take Adrien home parked in front of them.

That was Nathaniel’s chance. He knew it was risky, but at that point, he was convinced it was the only way to be seen by those emerald eyes differently than just a classmate. Allowing his crimson strands to fall even more over his face, he again timed his movements, and pretended to carelessly cross the street, at the same second the stretched vehicle made its way out, approaching him quickly, but not with enough speed to cause any harm, other than just push him off his balance. He was sure everyone could hear the tires screeching when Adrien’s chauffeur stepped onto the brake to avoid something worse.

Although he hated being the center of attention, it was necessary if Nathaniel wanted to achieve his goal. The youthful gazes were all converged into his figure, including Marinette’s, as he sat on the hot asphalt, facing the limousine’s front. Just as he expected, Adrien left the backseat and ran towards him, worry printed to his face, a natural reaction from someone as virtuous as the model. And now began the next step of his plan. Nathaniel only had to play his part as he did every day, as of someone uninteresting to everyone’s eyes.

“Are you ok? Here, let me help you out,” Adrien’s voice was full of concern. Despite knowing the redhead was inattentive to the basic rules of street-crossing, he was eager to provide any sort of aid, from just helping Nathaniel gather his material to medical expenses, if necessary, although the latter didn’t seem the case. “You feel any pain? Is anything broken?”

“I’m fine, Agreste.” That was all Nathaniel answered, waving off the arms that were offered as support for him to get back on his feet. After just dusting his clothes, he walked away without looking back, trying to hold back his embarrassment and a smile that tried to form in his face.

Adrien, on the other side, only felt his concern deepen, thanks to his suspicions that the redhead was faking his real emotions if he was indeed in any pain. Those suspicions were intensified when he saw the sketchbook, the so valuable sketchbook Nathaniel always carried close to his heart, under the limousine. He quickly picked it up and looked around, seeking for its rightful owner, but only to find the artist was already out of sight. The next day was the available option to return such prized possession to the proprietor, but being devoted to being prudent, Adrien went back into the vehicle and proceeded to call Nathalie, so she could find out the artist’s address and personally hand the sketchbook back to the redhead.

“Hum, I wonder…” Despite always knowing the right thing to do, curiosity struck Adrien the longer he held the sketchbook in his hands. He couldn’t help but wonder what those pages contained, mostly driven by a momentary jealousy, as he inquired if Nathaniel still had feelings for either Marinette or Ladybug. “No, that’s not right!”

“What’s that?” The black kwami questioned, taking the secret superhero by surprise, who quickly tried to hide the sketchbook from view. “I don’t remember you having that.”

“It’s not mine, it belongs to Nathaniel.”

“Then why you have it?”

“He forgot to pick it up after he was almost run over.”

“I don't think I get it.”

“Never mind. I’ll just give it back to him after Nathalie tells me where he lives.”

“You were going to take a look, weren’t you?”

“NO! That wouldn’t be nice! No matter how curious I am if he still feels anything for Marinette or Ladybug.”

“Want me to take a look at it for you?” Plagg offered, his unethical personality showing, for he knew the human would carry on the dilemma for as long as possible. “Just tell me what to look for and I’ll tell you yes or no. That way, you won’t have to do it yourself, but you’ll still know.”

“I don’t know? Doesn’t it feel like cheating ethics?”

“Too late, I’m already looking at it.” Plagg took the time to steal the sketchbook from Adrien’s hands and go through the pages while eating his usual camembert. The model panicked and infuriated at his companion’s audacity, but just as he was about to reprehend the kwami for his actions, he noticed something wasn’t right. “Uh, no Marinette or Ladybug, but there sure is plenty of you in here.”

“What?!” Adrien’s curiosity reached new levels, but then again, could be just Plagg teasing him. “Nah, you're probably playing with me again.”

“Look at it yourself if you don’t believe me…” Plagg then held the redhead’s loyal creativeness registry out so the human could see two of the countless pages filled with drawings of the young model, while the ones of Marinette and Ladybug were crossed by ‘X’s. In contrast to his obvious surprise, Adrien was pleased with how much talent was contained in those delicate strokes that so perfectly captured his image, some of them much better than any photographer had done throughout his career. “So, what are you going to do about it?”

“ _Quoi_?”

“Unless you feel the same way about him, I suggest you tell him you’re not interested.”

“Do you even have a heart? I can’t do that. He was already sad and angry when Marinette didn’t correspond, and I don’t want to be compared to Chloé as well. Last thing we need right now is Nathaniel being akumatized again.”

“So, you just going to ignore him?”

“I don’t know.”

"You don't know? What do you mean you don't know? It's not that complicated."

"Means I don't know! Just eat your camembert already and let me think."

" _Ce garçon_ 's drawings are pretty good, though. I wonder if he drew some spicy stuff in here too." Just as Plagg was to go through all the pages, looking for anything more explicit, Adrien closed the sketchbook around his tiny body, before removing him from there.

"Stop being so nosy, just for once."

* * *

“What am I doing? I’m not a bad guy... Am I?” Nathaniel pondered about his recent life decisions after arriving home and lying back on his bed, so he could sail the ceilings of his solitary room like he did daily. The white that he looked at worked as a blank canvas where he mentally painted his thoughts. Particularly picturing the possible consequences to his actions. Recalling the overdone tricks to be noticed by the blond, he realized how silly he must have looked. “By now, Adrien probably saw all the drawings I did of him.”

The artist spent a lot of time learning about his classmate’s anatomy, in other to register it over and over on the pages of his sketchbook. Sometimes going out on Saturdays, so he could invisibly watch the model in his usual photoshoots, the light and scenery bringing Adrien’s already admired physique even more into evidence. All that effort to make it convincing that he indeed had developed feelings for the one that enchanted most of his classmates only to be taken over by regret.

“Hopefully he didn’t see anything or just will tell me he’s not interested. Then I can give this foolish plan up.” He recalled Marinette, and in the end, it didn’t seem right to be petty about unrequited love, when he didn’t even feel anything for her anymore. Targeting Chloé wouldn’t make it justice either, for it would only bring him to her level, something he reprehended Marinette of doing when he felt betrayed by her. “Adrien is a nice guy. I shouldn’t use him like that for my selfish purposes. If he gets the wrong idea, I’ll just tell it’s all a misunderstanding. Yeah, that might work. Oh, _Dieu_ , what have I done?”

* * *

“Bye-bye, little butterfly,” Ladybug said farewell to the akuma after another villain was defeated by her and Cat Noir, although she noticed he wasn’t nearly as attentive or flirty as he usually is. Not even a cat pun was told during the whole time they fought the evil creature. And now that the battle was over, she would only wonder what was going on with her feline-themed partner. “You seem weird today.”

“Weird? Who’s weird? Today has been swell! Uh, I gotta go before I change back, so _au revoir_.”

Before Ladybug was even given the chance to reply, the leather-clad superhero was already jumping from building to building, trying to avoid any confrontation. Nathaniel has been on his mind all day. Not his combat against another akumatized Parisian was enough to bring his attention off the internal conflict he was facing on what to say to the redhead once they met again.

That was when he realized where he was. Nathalie had given the address to Nathaniel’s apartment and his memory recognized the street. He still had time before he was transformed back into his human self, so he thought it would be better to just sneak into the artist’s room and leave the sketchbook somewhere Nathaniel could find. It was already late, so hopefully the redhead was already fast asleep.

“Ok, here we go,”

He tried to silently squeeze through an open window. First thing he laid his eyes upon was the sleeping teenager over his bed, lying on his side while hugging his pillow, as if seeking any sort of contact. By the look of things and the size of the apartment, he lived by himself, something Adrien had no idea what it entailed, since he had so many servants to attend his necessities. Seeing such display forced the blond model to search in the depths of his memory what he knew about Nathaniel.

For some reason, he felt guilty for not bringing the redhead more into his circle of friendship. He considered himself to be friends with everyone in his classroom, including Chloé. But he still recalls how Nathaniel sat all by himself, throughout the school period, mostly silent, that same sketchbook being his escape from the reality he didn’t want to deal with. Juleka and Rose did talk to him from time to time, though. Yet, that didn’t mean Nathaniel opened himself up to anyone else. Adrien now realized he knew nothing about his shy classmate.

“Damn…” He muttered to himself, now thinking about using the sketchbook as an excuse to get to know the Nathaniel he never did. Maybe if the artist got to know him better, the crush he believed the other possessed over the model would disappear. So, with one last look at the sleeping teenager, he made his way out of the room, carrying the sketchbook with him until he was back into his mansion and could finally transform back. “Today couldn’t have been worse.”

“If you insist on leading _ce garçon_ on, tomorrow will be much worse,” Plagg replied, tired, but still up for another piece of camembert before bed. “I still think you should tell him you’re not interested.”

“First off, ‘ _ce garçon_ ’ has a name. It’s Nathaniel Kurtzberg. Second off, I can’t. That will flag I know about his drawings and he haven’t even told me about his feelings yet.”

“So, you will wait until his hopes are as high as they can be to crush his heart, got it.”

“Why am I even talking to you about that? What do you even know about relationships anyway?”

“Ok, forget I said anything.”


	2. Mon Manège À Moi

The next day didn’t feel any less nerve-racking either. Adrien thought a good night of sleep would help him set his ideas straight, but he was wrong. There he was, already in the classroom, hoping Nathaniel would show up as early for once so they could have a proper conversation, but as the room was filled with their mutual friends, without any sign of the redhead, he could feel his hopes of making it a quick resolution drift away.

“Are you going to stare at that the whole class?” Nino questioned, noticing how his friend had been looking straight at the sketchbook he had in hands. He took a seat beside the model and inspecting the artifact from a shorter distance, he realized it belonged to someone else. “Hey, isn’t that Nathaniel’s…”

“Shh… Don’t say it so loud. Remember last time Chloé had her hands on this? I just found it after the incident. All I need now is for Nathaniel to arrive, so I can give it back to him,” Adrien said in medium voice, hoping nobody would try to look inside the sketchbook and find out the classroom’s artist had been drawing him for a while now. “But for some reason, he seems to be running late for class today.”

“Chill out, dude. He’s probably looking for it and doesn’t know you got it. You have the whole morning to give it back to him. Just hide it from Chloé’s view until then.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

Unlike their suspicions, Nathaniel knew exactly with whom his sketchbook was, and that scared him beyond compare. Yet, he took enough courage to enter the classroom, hoping nothing more that his sketchbook was gone for good and that Adrien never did lay his emerald eyes on it. Walking past the door, he avoided eye contact with any of the other students, particularly a young blond model that sat on the first row of seats.

Adrien, himself, realizing the artist had arrived, tried to reach out for him, but no words went past his lips and Nathaniel was already rushing to his seat, hugging his bag like he always did. Just as he was about to reach into his own bag and grab the sketchbook to return it to whom it belonged, Miss Butier entered the room and greeted them all, forcing Adrien to delay his encounter to the end of class.

“ _Bonjour_ class, hope you all read chapter three like I asked you to…”

And by the time the bell rang, both Nathaniel and Adrien were asking themselves what would happen next. Although nervous, the taller of the two was the one who decided to get it over with. Trying to convince himself following Plagg’s advice was the best to do in that situation, he stood up from his chair, not caring about his friend’s looking at him going the opposite direction from the exit.

“Hi, Nath,” He said once in front of the artist’s desk, but regretting how he addressed his classmate, unsure if they were close enough to call each other by nicknames. For the first time, though, he noticed how Nathaniel’s hair partially covered his face from view like a red velvet curtain. “I mean, Nathaniel.”

“Anything I can do for you, Agreste?” Questioned the shorter male, not liking being the center of attention once more, so he tried to avoid the gazes from everyone else, especially after he saw Adrien take the sketchbook from inside his expensive bag, before holding it out so the other could grab it. “Oh, I was looking for it.”

“Yeah, I figured. Sorry if it is a bit dirty, must have been when it fell on the street, after, you know…”

“Why does it stink so bad?” Nathaniel questioned once he opened his most prized possession and was surprised by the smell that came from some of the pages. “Is this… Camembert? Did you look at it?”

“NO! I’d never! As for the camembert, probably because I had some inside my bag. Guess I now owe a new sketchbook, huh? It’s the least I can do after everything.”

“Oh, it’s not necessary. I have others at home. Thanks, anyway…”

“Hum, Nathaniel,” Adrien started, rubbing the back of his head while yelling at himself to just say he’s not interested in a relationship with him, apologize and ask if they could still be friends. It wasn’t that difficult. But seeing those blue eyes that seemed to hold back so much pain, his speech came out a lot more different than what he originally planned. “Would you like to watch my fencing training?”

“I…” Nathaniel could only stammer, trying to find words to come up with a reply. Saying yes would probably shock everybody, not to mention force him to spend more time with someone he wasn’t close to. If he said no, though, that would probably come out as rude, especially make their already awkward relationship even more uncomfortable. Why was Adrien even inviting him in the first place? He wouldn’t do it unless… “Uh, sure?”

“Cool. I’ll go get ready and meet you there.”

On his way out, Adrien could swear he was blushing from such awkward conversation. Chloé seemed angry since he never asked if she would like to join him in his training. Marinette, on the other hand, was surprised, yet happy to see her crush being a gentleman once again, only enough to outcome the ping of jealousy she felt for wishing she was the one invited instead.

* * *

“Did you really invite Nathaniel to watch you practice?” Nino questioned his long-time friend as they stood in the locker room. Adrien changed to the proper attire, still unsure how it all happened. Plagg would most certainly make fun of him, yet somehow, he couldn’t bring himself to just being honest. “Why, though?”

“I don’t know. But, don’t you feel like we don’t know him, like at all?”

“Can’t blame us if he won’t open up about himself. Seems like he just cares about drawing _Dieu sait quoi_ on that sketchbook you had this morning. Did you look at what he’s so obsessed about?”

“Of course not. I’d never invade his privacy. Independent of what he draws, I think it’s about time we get to know more about him. You know, his dreams, plans, what he likes to eat…”

“Still doesn’t explain why you invited him.”

“It was all I could think at the time.”

“Alright. Gotta roll, dude. See you later.”

Albeit trying so sound sure of himself, Adrien was as helpless as a kitten up a tree and feeling like he was clinging to a cloud he can’t understand. That single moment might change all the ones that will follow. And though his intentions may be already doomed and damned and dying, something in him won’t stop trying. Especially after realizing Nathaniel did show up, sitting on one of the available benches. He waved at the redhead, who clearly blushed at the action, but being cordial enough to wave back at his classmate.

The training begun and as it progressed, Nathaniel instinctively opened his sketchbook on a blank page, and inspected Adrien’s movements meticulously before grabbing his pencil and starting to perform light strokes over the paper, to sketch the somewhat heroic motions. He had been doing it so much in the past weeks, that it felt natural to just keep immortalizing Adrien in his small creativity keeper.

It even made time pass faster since he distracted himself and didn’t even notice Adrien approaching him and announcing the practice was over. While waiting until the model changed his attire again, he proceeded to give his most recent project the final touches by erasing the guiding lines. He was satisfied with how it looked and closed the sketchbook, before opening the bag to put it inside.

That is, until Chloé showed up and tried to take it from his hands.

“Hey! Give it back!” Nathaniel demanded in vain, aware nothing he could possibly say would have any effect on the Mayor’s daughter’s behavior.

“Not until I find out who you’ve been crushing on this time, you creep.” Chloé’s words offended him, and he would never get used to her mean personality. “Better not be me, or I’ll tell Sabrina to call her father on you, freak!”

Despite her physical appearance, Chloé was successful in removing the sketchbook from Nathaniel’s hold. Last thing he needed was the personified evil to make the whole misunderstanding even worse. But being humiliated like that blinded Nathaniel once again with the desire for vengeance and conquering the only thing she couldn’t have would be the perfect revenge for all that she has done to him so far.

“What’s going on here?”

Adrien’s voice took the three by surprise. Sabrina looked down and Chloé was paralyzed for a few seconds, fearing of being caught in her usual bullying practice, since she didn’t know how much her object of desire had been listening, added to the fact that she indeed had something that didn’t belong to her in her hands. While silence reigned in the gym, Nathaniel took the time to make his move.

For a split second, the redhead ran towards Adrien and hugged him tightly around the torso. The left side of his face against the model’s firm chest, making the other two present gasp, while Adrien himself wasn’t sure how to feel, but soon gathering his thoughts enough to come up with anything to say so he could understand what was happening.

“You ok, Nath? Is something wrong?”

“She won’t give my sketchbook back.”

“Chloé! That’s not nice!”

“He’s lying! I… I didn’t! He j-just dropped it and I was picking it up for him, I swear!”

“Hand it to me.”

“Adrikins…”

“Chloé…”

The spoiled teenager didn’t insist any further. Once the sketchbook was in Adrien’s hand, he felt the artist step back and move away from the hug. The action caused the taller male to miss it more than he should. He handed Nathaniel the sketchbook a second time that same day and saw an honest smile form in the other one’s face. Somehow, it made Adrien feel complete. It made him wish to cheer the other more, so he could get rid of that gloomy visage he got used to seeing regarding the artist.

“C’mon, Nath. I’ll give you a ride home.”

“Thanks, but I think I rather walk…”

“I insist. Now, come with me. My chauffeur’s waiting for us.” Adrien took the liberty to snake his right arm around the redhead’s shoulders, unaware that it made the shorter student to blush at it, as if he wasn’t the one who suddenly hugged his famous classmate out of the blue. They both felt so good about themselves that they even forgot about Chloé and Sabrina, leaving them behind as they made their way out of the gym. “Here, let me carry this for you.”

Chloé groaned in frustration when she saw Adrien offering to carry Nathaniel’s bag for him. The redhead clearly seemed unaccustomed to such chivalry, and that was when the regret came back. Adrien was being so nice to him, that doing all that just to make Chloé jealous and helpless seemed too cruel, even for her standards, especially if Adrien found out he was just being used for a petty purpose. Yet, above all the remorse that would probably come from it, Nathaniel was glad for not feeling so lonely anymore, even if it was just for a single day.

“How dare Adrien offer to carry that loser’s bag and not mine? Seeing them like this makes me wanna puke.”  Chloé’s expression changed from disgusted to an evil one, thanks to what she planned on doing about what she just witnessed. “And I think it Mr. Agreste wouldn’t like this if he found out.”

“You are going to call Adrien’s father?” Sabrina questioned, but without any courage to tell her alleged friend it wasn’t a good idea.

“Why wouldn’t I tell him that his pure, darling little son was having a dirty little affair with another boy?”

“Doesn’t that sound a little bit extreme? How do you even know they are dating?”

“Shut up, I’m on the phone,” Chloé carelessly replied while looking at her own polished fingernails and waiting for her call to be answered.

_“Nathalie speaking.”_

“Hello, miss. I’d like to speak with Mr. Agreste, please.”

_“Mr. Agreste is currently on a business trip. What is this about?”_

“This is Chloé, Adrien’s girlfr… classmate, and I think Mr. Agreste should know there is a boy named Nathaniel who has been seducing Adrikins, I mean, his son. Doesn’t seem right to just let it happen, you know?”

_“Is that all?”_

“Yes. Be sure to tell him exactly like I said.” Chloé ended the call after that and proceeded to move her attention to her dumbfounded friend. “I wasn’t being vicious, was I?”

* * *

While waiting for Adrien to enter the vehicle which would escort him to his next chore, Nathalie sat on the backseat, pondering about the information she was just given. If her memory didn’t fail her, Adrien did request her to find out the address to an apartment belonging to Nathaniel Kurtzberg. It was a peculiar one, but she never thought about questioning any of Adrien’s actions, especially knowing him for so long. Still, suspicions arose when she watched the young model holding out the door for a redhead teenager to get inside the limousine.

“ _Merci_ , Adrien.”

“Don’t mention it.”

She watched the two boys change glances and get comfortable before her presence was recognized by the two youngsters. Once her eyes met Nathaniel’s, she could see the artist look down, before bowing and cordially greeting her. She still didn’t know what said boy was doing inside the Agreste’s vehicular possession. Adrien, realizing he owned the assistant some sort of explanation, soon found himself trying to gather the best words to describe the situation.

“Nathalie, this is Nathaniel, a friend of mine,” Adrien started, getting hesitant after he saw her lift one of her eyebrows, yet keeping her austere expression. So, that was the alleged classmate that was supposedly seducing the young model. For some reason, by the redhead’s body language, she wasn’t convinced that he had those intentions. “I offered him a ride home. Hope that’s ok.”

“Your Chinese lessons start in 40 minutes.”

“Cool, there’s plenty of time to drop him off.” And so, the chauffeur drove off to the additional stop-over and away from the route of their usual Tuesday itinerary. It wasn’t far, and Nathaniel made sure to get out of the vehicle as soon as it stopped, only turning to bow once more while holding onto his bag and thanking Adrien again for the chivalry. “See you tomorrow, Nath.”

“ _Au revoir_ , Adrien.”

Once Nathaniel closed the door of the building he resided in behind him, the model got back inside the car, so he could be escorted to his next scheduled chore. But on the way there, he could only think of a way to make Nathaniel more open to him. A gift is always a good way to show you care about one, especially if it is something as he was planning on purchasing for the young artist.

“Nathalie, can you please get me some models of sketchbooks? And some art material too? I’d like to personally choose some.”

“You thinking of starting art classes, Adrien? I assume you’re aware of your tight schedule.”

“They are for Nath, not for me.”

“I see.”

“Make sure they are practical and beautiful too.”

“Noted.”


	3. Fais Comme Si

Nathaniel fell back on his bed, trying to process everything he went through that week so far, although it was only Tuesday. He partially regretted having hugged Adrien like that, while another part of him felt so glad to feel the warmth of the model’s body against his, unlike the cold pillow he held close to his chest every night. The small amount of villainy he had inside of him was overjoyed to witness Chloé cornered for once, like she did to him and the others so many times before. Yet, there was the fear of facing Adrien’s disappointment if the model ever found out what Nathaniel was doing to his feelings.

Before he could ponder about his life decisions any further, he heard the distinctive sound of a Skype call coming from his tablet. He pulled the electronic portable device out of his bag and held it above his face, before answering it. The image of Juleka on the other end reminded him why she called, and he wasn’t very pleased with what he would have to focus on in the upcoming hours.

_“Sorry for taking you from your eternal Soleil Levant, Monet, but we gotta finish that stupid science project for Ms. Mendeleiev’s class. I already called Rose, so she should pick up at any moment.”_

**_“Hi, Nath! Hi, Ju! So glad we weren’t separated like last time.”_ **

_“Still can’t believe I had to work with Chloé once. At least you got to work with Adrien.”_

**_“Adrien was such a gentleman. We definitely need more guys like him, right Nath?”_ **

“…”

**_“Nath, you ok?”_ **

“Oh, I’m fine.”

_“You’ve been acting weird lately. What’s up?”_

“Alright. I… I have a confession to make…”

* * *

“What’s with all the sketchbooks?” Plagg questioned after seeing all the different models over the table. “Don’t tell me…”

“I gotta pick a really nice one for him,” Adrien had one in each hand, looking left and right on which was the best of the two. “You know, after someone smeared the one he has with camembert. And after the Gorilla almost ran him over. And he needs something more secure after Chloé grabbed his.”

“Sounds like you are just coming up with excuses on why you need to buy him a really expensive one. You know that he will probably keep drawing you if you continue treating him like this, right?” Plagg tried to talk some sense into the blond teenager’s head, but Adrien didn’t seem to hear a single word, too concentrated in his task. “Are you even listening to me?”

“Damn, I don’t know what’s his favorite color, though…”

“Of course, you don’t.”

* * *

**_“Nath! How can you even think of doing something like that?”_ **

_“Wait, are we really discussing Nath getting revenge on Chloé? If so, count me in.”_

**_“Juleka!”_ **

“Girls, please. I don't intend to hurt Adrien in anyway. And c’mon, as if someone like him would ever feel anything for someone like me.”

Just as Nathaniel said that, a notification popped up on his screen. It came from an unknown number, but message he received surprised him more than anything. The sender identified himself as nobody else other than Adrien Agreste, which was suspicious, since they never exchanged phone numbers. The girls could see something was up by the way Nathaniel’s eyes widened as he read the message.

_‘What’s your favorite color? This is Adrien, d’ailleurs.’_

**_“Something wrong, Nath?”_ **

“He just messaged me, asking what’s my favorite color.”

_“And you thinking he wasn’t interested.”_

**_“I still think it is a bad idea to chase him like that.”_ **

_“He’s too deep to go back now, Rose.”_

“The plan was never to chase him, but to make him chase me, so it would make Chloé and Marinette jealous. And now that I said it out loud, it does sound silly and wrong.”

**_“You gotta be honest with him, Nath.”_ **

_“Wait, what if Adrien falls for you? Think you’d ever feel the same way eventually?”_

“I don’t know. Being lonely sucks, and at this point I think I’m accepting anyone.”

_“But this is not anyone we’re talking about, huh? This is Adrien Agreste. Model, pianist, fencer, polyglot… He might even be a superhero because he’s just that awesome.”_

“Ok, I get it, he’s perfect. No surprise I never had a chance with Marinette.”

_“And if he falls for you, what does that make you? Forget Marinette, because if you and Adrien become a couple, you’ll have the ultimate leverage over Chloé. I’d say go for it. You really have nothing to lose. But for now, just message him back.”_

“Fine, you got a point.”

* * *

“He answered, Plagg!” Adrien exclaimed in joy when he heard the notification sound coming from his phone, but soon as he read the reply he felt even more helpless than he was before. He didn’t have much time before Nathalie entered his room to punctually warn him about his next chore. The model buried his face into his arms that were crossed over his desk, forcing his speech to come out muffled. “He doesn’t have a favorite one, he likes them all equally…”

“Kinda makes sense? He’s an artist, right?”

Just as he raised his head, Adrien noticed a specific model of sketchbook that made him reach out to it, so he could inspect it from a closer distance. It wasn’t as expensive as the others, but it did seem like the right choice. He smiled and decided to give it to Nathaniel the next time they met. Soon enough, Nathalie knocked on the door and Plagg promptly hid in Adrien’s jacket, before she made her way inside the room.

“Time for a photoshoot, Adrien,” Nathalie announced, noticing how the youngster had a glimmer in his emerald eyes while holding one of the countless sketchbooks she ordered for him to pick one. “Did you choose one already?”

“Yeah. Can you wrap this one?”

“Anything else?”

“Think you can make it a little more customized?”

* * *

Hours have passed and during the photoshoot there was another akumatized Paris citizen he had to deal with, aided by Ladybug appearing just on time, as per usual. She was starting to worry for her heroic partner, for the way he seemed to zone out more than once during combat, causing him to be often struck by the enemy, but they remained victorious in the end.

Still, he was gone before she could ask if he was ok, just like he did in the previous battle. He jumped around town, taking the opportunity to go on a quick patrol before he changed back. As if by coincidence, he zoned out again, and ended up going towards the artist’s residence. Once he realized he was stepping on the roof right above Nathaniel’s apartment, he began to think his feelings were scrambled.

“What’s going on with me lately?” He asked himself, sitting down cross-legged over the tiles, before resting his head on his fist. “If I keep acting like this, people will start thinking I have a crush on Nath.”

“You’ve been awfully quiet today, Rose.”

The familiar voice made Adrien’s real and fake ears perk up. Silently, he made his way closer to the window until he was looking into it while upside down. His green eyes soon were acquainted with Nathaniel’s figure, lying on his stomach over his bed, feet dangling in the air while he had books and notebooks surrounding the tablet over the mattress right in the artist’s line of view, so he could chat properly with Juleka and Rose via Skype.

**_“I just can’t believe you won’t tell Adrien the truth.”_ **

“He will hate me if I do. At least someone else besides you two knows _j’existe_.” Nathaniel’s words made the leather-clad superhero feel bad. Assuming they were talking about the redhead’s feelings towards him, he tried his best to not turn it all into pity. But then again, he knew nothing about the artist, not just his favorite color. “It wouldn’t surprise me if he's pretending to like me.”

_“Who knows, he might also be hiding something more from you. Secrets or not, you two would make a cute couple.”_

**_“That I have to agree with. It would be so adorable. He might even take you to Venise one day. You always talking about how you’d love to go there.”_ **

“Hold on. I wouldn’t date him because of his money. You girls know how I feel about that.”

_“We know. You’re too proud to be pampered. Still, would you say no?”_

“No, but I don’t need to worry about that, because it will never happen.” Just as Nathaniel said that, the peeping feline-like vigilante lost his balance and crumbled down the roof, falling the two-story height right into an open dumpster, forcing the lid to come down, closing it, just in time for the glow of his transformation to be hidden. “What was that?”

_“Probably a stray cat. Those little devils make awful lotta noise.”_

Meanwhile, on ground level, Adrien opened the dumpster and jumped out, throwing a banana peal that laid on top of his head as far as possible, as Plagg also made his way out of the dirty environment. At least they weren’t caught by the artist, who seemed clueless the whole time Cat Noir was there listening in to his conversation.

“Centuries old and for the first time, I think I need a bath,” Plagg complained after spitting a rotten sardine out of his mouth. “Don’t tell me you’re thinking of-”

“ _Venise_ , huh?”

“I give up…”

* * *

The next morning took forever to dawn. Not only he was reasonably reprehended by Nathalie for showing up late and stinking, to which he couldn’t come up with an excuse for, but he was glad that she wasn’t going to tell his father anything. He couldn’t remember much from that time to the present moment, not even what Plagg was constantly complaining about. Ever since he was handed the wrapped sketchbook, he had been eager to see Nathaniel smile for him again once he gave it to him. So, he repeatedly paced the floor while waiting for the redhead to arrive.

“Whoa, dude. You want to make a hole on the ground with your foot?” Nino questioned as he took a seat beside his friend. He could sense the model was nervous, and he couldn’t deny his curiosity about the whole deal behind his friend’s strange behavior, especially after seeing the neatly wrapped gift in Adrien’s hands. “Is that for Chloé?”

“No, why would it be?”

“Today is her b-day, dude. She’s been talking about this the whole month. Did you forget?”

“You’re kidding, right?”

“Nope. She’s gonna be pissed if what you’re holding is not HER gift, you know.”

“Damn, I totally forgot.”

“Who is it for, then?”

“Hum, Nathaniel?”

“Ok, why?”

“I…”

“Adrikins! I knew you wouldn’t forget my birthday,” Chloé exclaimed, after walking into the classroom and already reaching out to take the gift from his hands. But she couldn’t contain her frustration when Adrien held the wrapped object as high as he could above his head and away from her reach. “Is this a game? Because I’m not enjoying it at all! Just give it to me!”

“Sorry, Chloé. This one is not for you. You see…” Just then, Adrien could see the artist walking past them and walking upstairs to his usual seat, forcing the blond to follow him, totally forgetting about Chloé for the second time. “Nath! I, uh… have something for you. Hope you like it.”

Nathaniel remained silent, yet surprised when he was given a beautiful, yet slightly wrinkle gift wrap that hid the artifact from view. Once he ripped it open, his view was blessed with a stylish sketchbook. It was completely black, apart from the golden art deco design on the cover, its refinement intensified by his full name also written in gold, thanks to Adrien asking Nathalie to do it for him. Along with all that, it had a small padlock, its key and a black and golden mechanical pencil with his initials on it.

“Wow… This is truly beautiful. But I can’t accept it. It must have been so expensive. Doesn’t seem right.”

“I owe you that after all that happened with yours. Please accept it. I picked it myself and I can’t return it after the customization. Besides, I suck at drawing, so it can really only belong to you.”

“ _Bien_. _Merci beaucoup_ , Adrien.”

There it was. Nathaniel’s smile. It seemed like the model’s world just got more colorful after seeing it. A warm feeling invaded his insides as he rubbed the back of his neck and Nathaniel looked down, but both blushing for a reason they couldn’t figure out why. But, it was all interrupted by Miss Butier clearing her throat, so her students would realize she’s present.

“Awesome. I’ll see you later. Just going to head back to my seeeeeeat…” As Adrien walked backwards, he totally forgot about the step, causing him to come stumbling down the wooden floor, quickly standing up and dusting his clothes like nothing had happened. “I’m ok! Sorry about that, _Mademoiselle_.”

“Did you see that?” Juleka whispered to the redhead, who sat down and still tried to understand what just happened before his eyes. “Adrien lost his composure because of you! That happens to us, mere mortals, but him? That is a sign of the times.”

“Don’t be silly.”

“Am I being silly? Look at Chloé. She’s fuming right now. And Marinette. She’s just as confused as you are. Congratulations, Nath. You did it!”

“I… I did?”

* * *

By the time the bell rang, signalizing the end of another school period, Adrien was already rushing in Nathaniel’s direction, which also helped him run from a confrontation with Chloé. He made a mental note to call Nathalie and ask her to buy a present for her, unaware that his own father did the same. But right now, his top priority was to reach the redhead before he left.

“Adrien?” Nathaniel was surprised to see the model standing in front of him again, unsure of what it could be this time, and not another offer for a ride home. “Is there something you need?”

“You going home?”

“If I don’t die on the way there, _oui_.”

“Cool. So, I was thinking… if you’re hungry and not too busy, would you like to accompany me for lunch?”


	4. Sous Le Ciel De Paris

Nathaniel was surprised how much his life had changed. It was just then that he used to walk past the model with envy overtaking his body. And now, he couldn’t help but smile at being cordially treated by the most respectable teenager he had ever met. They walked down the hallways, the redhead a couple of steps behind his taller classmate, hoping the distinctive figure of his rival to overshadow him like it was done many times before.

But, he could feel the gazes upon him, judgmental ones of course, but he tried to shrug them off. Hugging his bag like he always did, he followed his companion until they were both in front of the male restroom door. Adrien excused himself and went inside, while the artist patiently waited outside, not needing to do anything in the school’s public toilet while looking at the floor and at his anxiously moving feet. He was so into his own loneliness that he didn’t see a hateful person approaching.“

"I don’t know what’s your deal, but you better not be anything more than Adrikins’s friend, you hear?” Chloé yelled, after slamming her hand against the wall to startle the shy student. “You may have won the battle, but the war is far from over.”

“Hum, I really don’t know what you’re talking about…”

“Keep playing dumb, tomato-head, but you don’t fool me. Seriously, wake up. You think you have any chance with Adrien? I mean, look at you. No class, no style, not to mention your stupid hair. Can you be even more of a loser?”

Nathaniel could only silently hear the insults. Being bullied by Chloé was something he thought he would eventually get used to or learn to ignore, but her choice of words were getting worse, and that only fueled his rage over her. For a second, she was silent and all that echoed in his mind was Juleka’s advice, reminding him that she would be helpless if Adrien fell to his knees for him.

“Hey, sorry for taking so long,” The model appeared, soon struck by the doubt of what Chloé was doing there and and frowned at her presence. “You lost or something?”

“Oh, no. But I wouldn't mind you taking me home, just to make sure I get there safely. Today is my birthday, you know.”

“Yeah, good for you. Sorry, but I already have plans with Nath, so if you excuse us…”

With that, Adrien wrapped an arm around the artist’s shoulder, taking him out of his fury void for a second. They walked out of the building, somehow he knew he was being followed by the mayor's daughter and her loyal assistant, who watched them from the front steps. Just as they got in front of the Agreste’s automobile, the model made sure to open the door for his guest, who seemed hesitant for a moment.

“You ok, Nath?”

“Oh, yeah. I just think I rather walk.”

The redhead wasn't comfortable getting inside someone else's vehicle, although it wasn't the limousine that was parked in front of him, other than the luxurious sedan he witnessed Adrien getting in and out of. The other reason was because he wanted Chloé to see he was on top. So he planned on grabbing Adrien’s hand as they walked, which would require a lot of inner strength from his part.

“Sure. I'm fine with walking. Actually, I know a place close by that has a delicious salmon with spinach pie. What do you say we stop by there and get us one for lunch?”

“I'd love that.”

Adrien excused himself and took the bag from the shorter teenager’s hold, handing it over along with his own to the Gorilla, telling him to store them in the trunk of the car until they were back. He also told his bodyguard to wait until his return. They wouldn't take long and assured his protector that he would be fine just with Nathaniel.

As they began to walk towards the corner, where the crossing line was located, the artist could feel his anxiety levels increase dramatically. He had nothing to hold onto, since his bag was not with him, and he still had the intention of holding Adrien’s hand. The only problem was that he didn't know how to do it. In a couple of seconds he was internally panicking as he looked at the strong hand of his classmate, trying his best to find enough strength to reach out for it. It was such a simple task and he was already feeling lost thanks to his social awkwardness.

He was so lost in his own thoughts that he didn't realize he was about to cross the street without even noticing the red light for the pedestrians and the cars that rushed in front of him. Thankfully, he was pulled back before a real accident could happen, and the firm grip on his wrist brought him back to reality, making him look down at it, before moving his gaze to the smiling face of the model next to him.

“I guess you must really like salmon and spinach pie. You were about to cross without even looking and almost got run over again,” The blond laughed at the situation, thinking how adorable it was to see Nathaniel's cheeks match the color of his hair for a moment. “Relax, we're almost there.”

Clearly at loss of words, the artist just kept looking at his smiling hero, until the green light signalized they could proceed. Adrien strolled, pulling his companion along with him, without realizing his hand sliding down until it firmly grasped Nathaniel's hand, causing the shorter male to forget why he even wanted it to happen in the first place, simply enjoying the sensation of having someone who seemed to enjoy his company. The anxiety seemed to drift away from his body, for it felt much better than holding his bag close to his chest.

He didn't even look back to witness Chloé grunting, enraged by the image of the couple of boys holding hands while crossing the street. The only thing he could see was the way Adrien's golden locks moved along with his strut, as he was guided. The image made him smile and look down at their hands together, until the bell made him realize where he was. Just as they entered Tom & Sabine Boulangerie Patisserie, a big man came to greet the customers, although he seemed familiarized with the model for some reason.

“ _Bienvenue_ , Adrien! What a great surprise! I assume you're here to practice video games with Marinette again.” Tom said, soon realizing the youngster was holding hands with the other boy that accompanied him. He wasn't expecting to see it, but it didn't affect his cheerful mood. “You brought a friend too, huh?”

“Yes, sir. This is Nathaniel. And no, we’re here to get us something nice for lunch. Please tell me you have that delicious salmon with spinach pie.”

Adrien himself didn't realize he hadn't let go of the redhead’s hand yet. In fact, he even intertwined their fingers, so it would be more comfortable. Sabine giggled at the public display of affection, momentarily forgetting about her daughter's feelings for the blond teenager. She could notice the shorter one was blushing and partially hiding himself from view behind Adrien's figure.

“Well, today is your lucky day! I just got this beauty out of the oven.” Tom moved behind the glass display cabinet and took the still steaming pie from inside it, causing both boys to inhale deeply at the inviting, fresh smell of the baked pastry. “ _Chérie_ , would you give them a nice discount while I wrap this up?”

“That's not necessary, I will pay in full.” Adrien insisted, pulling his wallet from the inside pocket of his jacket.

“Nonsense! You are both friends of Marinette, right?” Sabine took the money the blond boy handed her, but only took a few bills. “A discount is more than fair.”

“Well, I guess I'll pay for half of it, then,” Nathaniel's voice took them by surprise, as the artist took a few of his own bills from his pocket. It wasn't much, but it was enough to pay for his part.

“I invited you for lunch, Nath. Don't worry, I'll pay for it.”

“And I'm just showing that I'm thankful for the invite by helping with the costs.”

“Ok, sixty/forty.”

“No, fifty/fifty.”

“Fine, seventy/thirty.”

“Adrien!”

“Ha-ha, I'm just kidding.” But he wasn't. Once he moved his gaze to Sabine, he mouthed 'seventy/thirty’ at her and she winked back at him. In Adrien's mind, it didn't make sense for the redhead to pay for anything, no matter how low the price was, even if it was just a fraction of it. Once they were given their respective changes, Tom handed the pie to the taller of the two. “Thank you, Mr. Dupain and Mrs. Cheng.”

“Come back anytime. You two are always welcome here!”

The elder couple waved at them as both boys made their way to the front door, only to be surprised by Marinette coming home later than usual because Alya needed her help with something. Her eyes widened after seeing Adrien in her family's business space, her gaze moving down until she saw he was holding hands with Nathaniel while his other one held onto the bag straps that contained the recently purchased pastry.

“Hi…” She weakly said, still paralyzed by what she was seeing. The artist seemed to avoid eye contact with her at all costs, clearly ashamed at the consequences of his vengeance plan. “You guys going somewhere?”

“Yeah, I invited Nath for lunch. Now we're heading to the park to eat this whole pie.” Adrien's words shouldn't hurt as much as it did to her. “Would you like to join us?”

“Ah, no. Thanks, but I got a lot of stuff to do.”

“I guess I'll see you later, then. C’mon, Nath.”

Marinette kindly held the door open for them to get out of the pastry shop while watching the artist being dragged out by her crush. It was like all of her hopes and dreams went along with them. She suddenly started feeling gloomy and felt the necessity of talking to Alya about it. But, of course, her parents were there to make her feel even worse.

“Such a lovely couple. I didn't think I would see Adrien dating another boy, but he looked so happy,” Sabine commented while her husband nodded to her words. “For some reason, I think I like him even more now that I know he’s gay.”

“Maybe he's bisexual,” Tom added while repositioning the pastries inside the glass display cabinet to fill the void left by the pie he just sold. “You know, teens are a lot more open minded these days.”

“He could be pansexual, though. A guy like Adrien seem to just love people without conditions,” As her parents discussed her crush’s sexuality, Marinette covered her face with both her hands and grunted at everything she had heard so far. “Oh, this gives me an idea! We should show our customers that we are supporters of the LGBTQIAP+ community. That might give us a boost in the sales, especially of wedding cakes!”

“That is a great idea, _chérie_! I'll go print some flags right now,” Tom exclaimed and then looked at his daughter, who didn't seem happy. “Will you help your old man with the printer, buttercup?”

“Actually, I'm not feeling very well. Think I'll just lay down for a bit.” She lied, hoping her parents wouldn't insist on the subject any longer.

"Sweetie, you have all the right to be sad. Your _père_ and I will be here if you need to talk, ok?”

“Thanks, mom.”

Marinette then proceeded upstairs until she arrived in her room. The room she took so much time adorning with anything related to Adrien. She wondered if that was a punishment for not giving Nathaniel a proper chance when he had feelings for her and she simply ditched him because she only had eyes to the model she could barely keep a conversation with for more than a couple of seconds.

Tikki got out of her purse and flew above her, but didn't dare saying a word, for she witnessed everything from her hideout. Not even the superpowers can fix a broken heart. She watched Marinette lay over her side on bed and call Alya on her phone. The young girl even put it on speaker because she suddenly felt too tired to hold it in her hand.

_“Hey, girl. What's up?”_

“I think they are dating.”

_“Who?”_

“Adrien… Adrien and Nathaniel.”

_“Really? I mean, how can you be so sure?”_

“I just saw them leaving the shop after buying pie and going out to the park to have lunch together.”

_“Friends probably do that all the time.”_

“They were holding hands, Alya.”

_“Oh…”_

“Was I too late? I can barely talk to Adrien as it is, so he just found someone that can actually say a sentence without stuttering in front of him. Guess this is how Nathaniel felt when I fooled him, huh?”

_“He was akumatized. And I could swear he had a crush on Ladybug a few weeks ago, but if those two are happy together, I guess all we can do is wish them the best.”_

“Yeah…”

_“C'mon, girl. Look at the bright side. At least be glad he's dating someone sweet, gentle and romantic as Nathaniel. Now Chloé won't get her hands on Adrien either.”_

“True, can't argue with that.”

_“Besides, he might have been hiding that he had a crush on Nath for a while now.”_

“Also can't argue with that.”

_“Now that I think of it, they would make a nice couple, wouldn't they?”_

“They would.”

_“Sorry, I shouldn't have said it.”_

“No, you're right. I should be happy for him. I know his father is not the most accepting person in the world, so I imagine it must be difficult for him to conceal both family and relationships. But he managed to find Nath. He's probably being the perfect boyfriend and right now I hope I can find someone like that, since Adrien is taken. It will be hard, but I think I'll survive.”

_“That’s right! You just gotta get used to the idea. Cat Noir may be available though.”_

“Uh… No, thanks.”

_“I was kidding, but let me know if you ever feel like needing anything even if it is just a hug. Some things are not meant to be and it sucks, but I will always be your friend. So, if you just want to vent, I'm here for you.”_

“Thanks, Alya. I actually feel a lot better now. I wish I had seen it sooner, though. Adrien may be gay, but at least I know Nath will take care of him.”

_“Who knows, he might be pan.”_

“Oh, no. Not you too…”


	5. Milord

“Is the pie good? Sorry for not bringing any plates and flatware. Geez, I even forgot to get us something to drink. I didn’t plan this whole lunch thing right, did I?” Adrien’s panic over simple things amused the redhead. He was happy just for not eating alone like did most of his school life. The model’s presence did put a smile on his face, not to mention the delicious pieces of pie he just savored. “Can you forgive me for my lack of etiquette?”

“Everything is fine. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me so far,” The artist said with sincerity. Rose was right all along. Adrien was indeed a gentleman and for a moment he liked the idea of spending the rest of his life with the blond. It was like he was stuck in La vie en rose and didn’t want to leave that melody so soon. “Just wish to someday being able to retribute in anyway.”

“Oh, I never did anything expecting you to be in debt with me. This is all free of charge, _traverser mon coeur_ ,” Adrien drew an imaginary cross over his chest with his index finger and laid back on the grass they sat upon, placing his arms behind his head, but never moving his gaze away from his companion, who behaved so impeccably during all the time they spend together. It reminded him of someone he missed so dearly... “I don’t mean to pry, but why do you try to hide your sophistication? You clearly have some knowledge on how to behave with posture.”

“Are you sure you don’t wanna pry? Because it definitely sounds like you wanna pry.”

“Yeah, I kinda do, if you don’t mind.”

“It’s  just… I can’t afford living in luxury to behave like that. No expensive cars, clothes or even a big house. It wouldn’t make sense for me to act like I have more money than I really do.”

“We can go to the mall and I’ll buy everything you want if that makes you feel any better.”

“That is not nearly what I meant… You don’t need to buy me anything, really.”

“Ok, the offer is still up if you ever change your mind. Just know you don’t need to hold yourself back when you’re with me.”

“ _Merci_.”

“Don’t mention it.”

“...”

“...”

“Adrien?”

“Hum?”

“What are we doing?”

“Having lunch together, I think…”

“I mean, what are we really doing?”

That question was the one Adrien hadn’t given much thought into so far. Or maybe he didn’t want to because he already knew the answer to it. Ever since he saw those drawings of him in that sketchbook, he became curious to know the man behind the art, and the more he did, the more he wanted to stay around the artist. He was enjoying what he was finding out and had no plans of stopping anytime soon.

“I… I don’t know. I have never felt this way before.  Making friends was already hard enough for me to figure out, but now, I have no idea what this is. I think I like you, Nath. As in more than just a friend. It may be a little early to say, but if you are willing to help me figure out my feelings,” Adrien sat up and now looked at the redhead straight in the calm lake in the redhead’s eyes before taking hold of his ivory hands with his own. “I’d be more than thankful…”

Nathaniel couldn’t remember blushing with such intensity. His face was probably the same shade of his hair or even deeper. If Adrien weren’t holding his hands, they would probably be shaking from the anxiety, mixing with the regret for only being able to build a romantic relationship with anyone, especially with the teenage model.

“You really want to spend even more time with… _moi_?”

“Is that a yes?”

“No. I mean, yeah. We can try and figure out what is going on… together.”

They both exchanged glances for a second. It was later interrupted by a phone call from Nathalie, reminding Adrien about his next chore. The sole reason he had free time to indulge himself in a nice lunch break was because his photographer called in sick. But now that Nathalie texted him to warn him so, he only had time left to walk the redhead home.

“I gotta go, but I’ll drop you at your place first.” Adrien stood up and held his hand out for the artist to hold, so he could pull him up. Once Nathaniel was on his feet, the blond teenager intertwined their arms and they strolled through the park, going around the fountain, everything seeming so much colorful and brighter for some reason. “Wish I had approached you before…”

Nathaniel was blushing too much to think of a reply. He couldn’t tell, but Adrien’s face was adorned with a smile when he saw the artist face match the color of his hair. All the while, it felt like the world was in slow motion. Walking through the world with Adrien, he now could see how happy life could be when Adrien was with him and he was with Adrien. It was almost like they could fly away and find another day to call their own, where they could be in love alone. Now he just needed to hear Adrien say that he was also glad to be walking though the world with him.

“Alright, we’re here.” The gentleman’s voice brought the artist back to reality as they stood in front of his apartment building. Soon enough, Adrien’s chauffeur appeared in the sedan that would take the model to his next chore, but not before the blond youngster handed the bag that rightfully belonged to the shorter male. With his usual bow, Nathaniel thanked the cordiality he didn’t believe he was meritorious of. Adrien approached him though, even more than anyone else had done before. “May I…”

Without even finishing the sentence, the model leaned even closer until his lips touched the side of Nathaniel’s face, as if it needed any more fuel for the way it was burning from his endless blushing. The sweetness of the action made them both smile after it was over. The artist could swear the one and only Adrien Agreste was blushing as well, but that would probably be his mind playing tricks on him.

“Thanks for inviting me to lunch, Adrien. I really enjoyed it. More than I thought I would.”

“Glad to hear it. We should do that again anytime soon… Uh, see you later then?”

“Sure. _Au revoir_.”

And with that, Adrien reluctantly walked into the car, making sure to look through the window and give the redhead one last wave before the vehicle moved away. Nathaniel then entered his home, his conflicting feelings hitting him hard once again. Despite that never being part of the plan, he could feel why people loved Adrien so much. But then again, he had been lying to the model ever since the beginning, which made him even less worthy of such luck. He stared at the sketchbook he was presented with. Opening to the first blank page, he thought of what he should draw. Drawing Ladybug always made him feel relaxed, but for some reason, this time he wanted to try to immortalize Cat Noir into those pages.

* * *

That same afternoon, the mailman rang his doorbell. Soon as he answered the door, countless men entered his apartment, carrying many boxes into his small living room, which he was a little confused why they were delivering it at his place, considering he hadn’t ordered anything. He approached the one with a clipboard in hands and bowed, while still nervously watching packages and more packages being dropped in a corner of the shrinking room.

“ _Excuse moi,_ but I didn’t ask for any of those.”

“You’re.... Nathaniel Kurtzberg, right?” With a nod, he answered the employee. “Everything has been paid already, I was told to deliver it, nothing more. _Bonjour, monsieur_.”

Before he could question the mailman any longer, he and the other men were already making his way out of his apartment. He approached the pile of unknown objects, only to find a small card. As he opened it, he soon realized who was the one who was behind that suspicious delivery.

_‘Put all your sophistication into the art materials I sent you. I got Nathalie to book an exposition for you with famous art investors and influent buyers invited to see your work. You have two months to get as many paintings done and fill a gallery. So, get to work!  Make me proud._

_Yours truly,_

_Adrien Agreste’_

Nathaniel had to sit down so he wouldn’t fall on the floor after his knees started failing him. He breathed heavily before screaming in delight. That truly felt like a dream, and if it was, he was going to enjoy it as much as he possibly could. Tearing the packaging of one of the large canvas, he soon placed it over the old easel he owned, but haven’t used for the lack of money to buy more materials for painting. Changing his attire, he went back into his room and prepared the colors he would need for his first painting. _Noir et vert._

* * *

The evening eventually came and fortunately there were no akumatized citizens to be defeated. It gave the leather clad hero enough time to go through a quick patrol before making his way straight to Nathaniel’s apartment. He silently made his way over the window and silently watched the boy who now brought a smile to his face whenever he came into view. Through the glass, he could see Nathaniel with his hair tied in a man bun, wearing a stained apron and humming “La Vie en Rose” while painting. The image made the cat-themed savior sigh deeply, enough to fog the window, which he quickly cleaned by drawing a heart on it, enough to see Nathaniel through the romantic frame.

“I think I’m in love…” He said to himself, right before he slipped on a roof tile, forcing him to hold onto the window parapet. “Whoa!”

The noise of some of the tiles falling caught the attention of the artist, who walked over the same window, opening it slowly and leaning over. Just as he was about to close it, he looked down and was blessed with the image of the hero.

“ _Bonsoir, milord_.”

“Cat Noir? W-What are you doing here?”

“Just doing some patrols. I heard your humming and wanted to make sure everything was fine.”

“Oh, I’m ok. Thanks for worrying.”

“No problem. Parisians need to stay safe. So, what were you doing?”

“Hum, I was painting.”

“Can I see it?” Before Nathaniel could allow it, the superhero already made his way into the room through the window, walking over to the easel, only to find the painting was him. It made his heart feel warm, right before he moved his attention back to the now blushing artist. “This is really good. Although, I’m pretty sure my muscles are bigger than this.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry. I only had glimpses of you and now this is the closest I’ve been to you. I didn’t have a model so I used Adrien’s anatomy as my base. But I will do the alterations you mentioned.” Nathaniel moved to the canvas, quickly picking a brush and carefully altering the physique of the hero that now stood in his room with him. “How about now?”

“Now that’s more like me. You should get a character sheet of me. That might help you with hum, future paintings.”

“I’d do one, but then again, you’d need to be around here for a while for me to get it right. But you are on patrol and probably has more important things to do.”

“Is this pose alright?” It was like Cat Noir didn’t even hear what the artist just said. Nathaniel blushed at the leather clad male in a somewhat heroic pose, making sure to flex here and there for his spectator. Shaking his head back to reality, the redhead, quickly grabbed his new sketchbook, quickly stroking the pencil over the blank page, abusing of the guidelines so he could get the proportions correct, although they seemed all too similar to Adrien’s for some reason after he immortalized the various poses Cat Noir went through. “Hope that helped.”

“Oh, it sure did. _Merci_.”

“Nath! You there? Open the door!” Juleka called from the other side of the front door.

“Damn it. I totally forgot!”

“What’s wrong?”

“Tonight, my friends will stay for a sleepover. You have to go. Now.”

“ _Bien_. _Au revoir_ , _milord_.” Cat Noir then performed a cordial bow, followed by a gentle kiss on the artist’s hand and a wink, before he disappeared out of the window and into the night.

Nathaniel then ran to the front door, unlocking it for his guests. They entered the apartment, their eyes already locked on the piles and piles of unpacked art material over the living room. Juleka and Rose exchanged glances and by the way their mutual male friend was behaving, they could tell he was hiding something.

“Were you speaking with someone before we got here?”

“ _Moi_? As if anyone could have been here and leave without you girls noticing.”

“And what's all this stuff?”

“Hum, that's art material.”

“I know, genius. Where did you get it?”

“I bought it.”

“With what money? You can barely pay the rent.”

“I just…”

“Adrien bought it for him!” Rose yelled from across the room, waving the card he received from the model. “That is so romantic. He is being such a supportive boyfriend regarding your career. He even got you a place for you to sell your paintings. Congratulations, Nath.”

“That means you have Adrien Agreste, Rose has Prince Ali… I wonder when my awesome future lover will show up.” Juleka pointed out and looked down in fake shame. “Whatever. I’m gonna get us something for to eat. We brought plenty of stuff.”

Nathaniel had those conflicting feelings messing with his head again. They weren't boyfriends. Adrien and him decided to figure out their feelings together. He would rather take it slower, but he couldn't get enough of the model around him. For a while, he believed love was only for the lucky. So if Adrien indeed fell for him, that would be more than okay.

Unfortunately, he didn't know how long he would be able to date the model without telling him everything. Not only that, he was also afraid to risk losing Adrien for good if he even thought of being honest about everything that they went through was based on a lie. Especially when now he could assure that he also developed feelings for his classmate, not that it surprises him in anyway, for he had enough in those couple of days to build enough love for Adrien through all eternity.


End file.
